CHARLOTTE, NC — A Rock Hill man was arrested Monday on bank, wire, and mail fraud charges after allegedly using a “synthetic identity” fraud scheme to get more than $340,000 from various financial institutions.
According to an indictment, from roughly December 2013 to April 2017 Charles Whitlock, Jr., 50, used fake identities in combination with real and fabricated information regarding different individuals to open more than 750 new credit cards. The real or sometimes entirely fake information about people that Whitlock allegedly used included names, social security numbers, dates of birth, addresses, and telephone and cell phone numbers.
Officials say the cards issued to Whitlock under the synthetic identity information had credit limits ranging from $100 to more than $500.
The indictment also alleges that Whitlock used “pollinated synthetic identities,” which allowed him to add synthetic identities as an authorized user to existing credit card accounts. This allowed access to the existing account holder’s information and open new cards and raise credit limits.
Whitlock allegedly submitted the information online and by telephone. According to the indictment, Whitlock used hundreds of addresses and then used the online US mail forwarding service from the USPS to have the mail sent to addresses under his control. Officials say this helped him avoid fraud detection systems.
Officials say Whitlock, if convicted, could face up to 30 years in prison and up to a $1,000,000 fine for the bank fraud charges. The wire and mail fraud charges would each carry a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine.
